1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a hollow shaft coupling for connecting a shaft to a hollow shaft, wherein said hollow shaft coupling can be arranged completely in the hollow shaft and can effect clamping both radially inwardly as well as radially outwardly.
2. Related Art
Such hollow shaft couplings inter alia serve to couple a motor to a linear unit. In the operating state, such a hollow shaft coupling is arranged completely in the hollow shaft and hence is situated quasi inside the hollow shaft. A shaft, for example, a solid shaft, connected to the hollow shaft by means of the hollow shaft coupling via clamping protrudes in axially from outside. Usually, a clamping unit serves to ensure this clamping which can achieve clamping both radially inwardly as well as radially outwardly. In addition, this known clamping unit is arranged on the axial level of the ball bearing which supports the hollow shaft.
Since the central axes of the shaft and the hollow shaft are often offset relative each other and compensating is not possible, this leads to various problems. These include, for example, an axial bearing load due to thermal expansion and mounting errors as well as a radial bearing load due to the axes being offset. Since the forces acting radially outwardly occur in the area of the ball bearings, this can additionally result in a distortion of the ball bearing(s) and a bulging of the hollow shaft.
The task of the present invention is to provide a hollow shaft coupling by means of which a shaft can be clamped and thus connected to a hollow shaft without problem.